Ellsworth

I once purchased a used, harbor freight, vibratory tumbler from one of the online marketplaces.
I had noted that the fellow was also selling some very nice used pool cues. I assume they were nice, iirc the price was around $500 each.
So I figured the seller might know a bit more than average about the game.

I learned pool and geometry at the same time in high school.
I never got very good at either, but enjoyed both.

The table a school was old, and had been re-felted by students as a learning opportunity.
The room was just big enough for the table, and the class to stand around and watch/take turns.

My dad had a pool table in his home around that same time, and we'd usually play a few games when I visited him.
His table was also bought used.
In high school we favored nine ball, my father preferred straight pool.

I could never match his skill or style, and I took the opportunity to ask that seller of a tumbler and cues if he'd ever seen a man play the game like my father.
I described the methodology carefully, only to be called a liar.

Now I shall describe it to you, and let you figure it out.

The first game always went the same, my father would play one handed.

• He'd blade his body to the table.
• The cue was held in his right hand, and he'd V his elbow so his hand was about level with his shoulder.
• The cue was gripped so that his hand was beneath the stick, and it was pointed down at an angle... like a spear.
• And then he'd stick that cue ball, and send it exactly where it needed to go.
• He'd run the table, once, twice, then 'goof' (stall) about half way through that third time (accidentally or intentionally goof? I think it was a 'stall' IIRC he'd always run the table twice.)
• There was never a scratch, and the tip of the cue never touched the table, and he'd never use a bridge.
• After running the table 2.5 times, one handed, the next time it was his turn he'd switch to a standard grip, and stall the remainder of the evening.

The first run, where he proved/revealed his skill, was a lot like playing a video game at someone's house that owned the game and console that you didn't.
Where 'taking turns' led to watching someone finish all the levels, and then they handed you the controller.

I asked the seller of the tumbler and cues what that meant, in the game of pool.
I've never hung out in bars or pool halls, and don't watch the sport.

The guy who owned those nice cues called me a liar, then looked at me and said "that's not possible."
IIRC my response was something like, "Bullshit, don't try and tell me what's not possible. My father was Bruce Lee's third student in America, it's dedication and practice."
(There are a lot of differences between Ping Pong and Pool, and a lot of similarities)
And then we parted as friendly as could be, having dropped that subject as I picked up the tumbler.

Edited to add:
In retrospect I could have told that man, "My father was his father's son," and it likely would have been a more accurate explanation.
Especially if I add the element of his mother's influence.
But then the issue devolves into complexity, with an explanation that is more than a soundbite, which would make it more than many can chew.

I am guessing that my father's skill at pool pre-dated his time with Bruce.
I can only speculate the who, when, where and why he picked up pool and decided to be great at it.

Edited to add:
He had thrift store cues at the house, nothing over $15.

I seem to recall he practiced the same technique with his left hand too. That he could switch hands and sink a few.
But, the way memory works... I can't state this unequivocally. Like when I forget someone's name then remember it a week later.
I won't give this a second thought, and maybe something will pop up.

The occasional left handed mini-run would not have impressed upon me as much, at the time, compared to his right handed run.
I imagine because, I would not have appreciated the change in difficulty at that age.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__4_fCgjI74
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pGu5XJqtgk